Nov 13 (Reuters) - Swedish clothing retailer Kappahl said on Monday that its fiscal first quarter sales had been below expectations and that its quarterly operating profit would fall far short of the year-ago profit.

* Analysts had expected an operating profit of 148 mln SEK for the quarter, which ends in November, according to Thomson Reuters data based on three estimates

* “Sales during the quarter has not lived up to our expectations so far. This is mainly depending on our price- and campaign strategy that has not given the effect we wished for in the tough market climate during the fall,” Kappahl CEO Danny Feltmann said in a statement

* “A lower consumption in general during the warm fall has resulted in reduced traffic,” Kappahl said

* Kappahl shares have been very strong for the past three months, rising around 40 pct